Family Portrait
by Heel Princess
Summary: Oneshot: I seem to rip Steph and hhh apart all the time in my fics. but what would that do to there two children. set a few years down the road. steph/hhh.. jericho cameo. Songfic to pinks song family portrait...read and review please!


**One of my favorite and emotionally driven peices to date. hope you enjoy it like i did... song is pinks family portrait. read and review please..**

Taking the little girl by the hand her mother led her upstairs. "Where are we going?" Aurora asked inquisitively. Stephanie smiled down at the small child, she couldn't believe that five years had passed since she gave birth to her precious gift. She didn't want to be the one tearing her family apart but she couldn't deal with Paul any longer. "I'm going to tuck you in." Stephanie said with a smile. "It's getting late and it's already long past your bedtime."

"But daddy always puts me to bed." The tot whined. "When's he coming home?"

"I don't know if daddy is coming home tonight." Stephanie told the little girl, who was now sat prominently in her lap.

"Is he working?" The little girl inquired. Stephanie shook her head no as tears began to roll down her cheeks.

"Mommy are you crying?" She asked, the little girls face suddenly turning. Her mother quickly whipped the teardrops away, she had to be strong, she shouldn't cry in front of Aurora.

Aurora tightly wrapped her arms around Stephanie's neck and squeezed tightly, giving her peck on the cheek in the process. "Don't cry mommy I love you." She said in her tiny voice. Stephanie only began to cry harder, stroking the back of the child's head…combing her light hair with her fingers. She promised herself years ago when she saw her own parents fighting she would never put her kids through that and now here she was worse off then her parents ever were.

**Mama please stop cryin'  
I can't stand the sound  
Your pain is painful and it's  
Tearing me down  
**

"Hunny do you know what divorce is?" She asked pulling the little girls grip off of her. The toddler nodded yes, Stephanie figured she had picked up on it in kindergarden. "It's when mommy's and daddy's don't live together anymore." Aurora said, and then it must have hit her as she to began to tear up. "That's not going to happen to you and daddy is it?"

Stephanie's heart broke, she hated that a child her size had to feel the horrible pain she knew she must have been feeling. "Me and Daddy just don't get along that well anymore…" She started. The child crawled over to Stephanie and kneeled up to her mothers level so she could whisper to her. Cupping a hand around her ear she spoke… "Sometimes late at night I hear you fighting."

A sting of pain shot threw Stephanie's heart again. She always hoped that they never woke the children with their fighting and in the morning all the kids would see would be mommy and daddy with big fake smiles. Stephanie thought of how just last night she threw a vase at Paul, how did she expect not to wake the children? The little girl next to her placed her small hand on her mothers arm. "I told daddy you didn't mean all those bad things you said to him."

**I hear glasses breaking'  
As I sit up in my bed  
I told dad you didn't mean  
Those nasty things you said**

Afterher lastcomment Aurora hurried off the bed and grabbed something off her night table, hiding it behind her back. She returned to her bed and Stephanie and revealed from behind her back her tiny piggyback. "I heard daddy say that he didn't know why you need a yawer, because you certainly didn't need his money. I'll give you my savings if you stop fighting."

Stephanie smiled at her gesture but inside she was screaming, how had she allowed her kids to be exposed to all this."Mommy doesn't need that thank you sweetie, me and daddy don't just fight about money…there all lots of things that we don't agree on anymore."

"I'll get bapteased." She shouted.

"What are you talking about?" Stephanie questioned.

"I heard daddy yell that he wanted me and my brover to get bapteased."

Suddenly she knew what she was talking about. "Oh baptised." She said to Aurora.

"Ya we'll do that, that will make daddy happy won't it?"

**You fight about money  
'Bout me and my brother  
And this I come home to  
This is my shelter**

"Just get some sleep ok? We'll talk about this some more tomorrow…right now its late and you need to sleep."

"Ok mommy." Aurora told her and climbed up the bed to crawl under her Barbie sheets. Stephanie pulled the covers up over her and kissed her on the head before she moved to the door to flick off the light switch. "Goodnight baby."

"Goodnight mommy…I love you."

"I love you to…" Stephanie replied.

"And daddy loves you." The little girl finished.

Stephanie wished things were different but they weren't. She made a mistake a long time ago and Paul never did forgive her and now it seemed things had spiralled out of control, there was no going back. She didn't want the children growing up in a hostel environment but Aurora seemed to have already heard and seen so much that she probably thought that all of this was normal.

**It aint easy, growing' up in world war 3  
Never known what love could be  
You'll see,  
I don't want love to destroy me  
Like it has done my family**

As soon as her mother left the room Aurora hopped out of bedand grabbed her HHH teddy bear that her daddy had brought her home from the road last weekend. She snuggled into it tightly, daddy was her hero and she couldn't understand why mommy didn't love him anymore. All Aurora did understand was that she would do anything not to see her Daddy go.

Can we work it out  
Can we be a family  
I promise I'll be better  
Mommy I'll do anything  
Can we work it out?  
Can we be a family?  
I promise I'll be better  
Daddy please don't leave

Stephanie closed the door behind her and made her way down the hallway to the baby's room. He was hardly a baby anymore Hunter was three now, Stephanie smiled when she walked in the room and watched him sleep peacefully. He was so innocent and didn't know what was going on around here.

She walked over to the small bed and leaned down to kiss him on the forehead, he had been out for hours and with Aurora down to she needed some time to collect herself. It had been a whirlwind of a day, she hadn't heard from Paul since he left last night in a blind rage. She left the little boy's room and pulled out her cell phone, calling the only person she could count on for comfort right now. "Chris?" She said into the mouthpiece. "Can you come over, I need you right now?"

Sighing she closed her cell phone, she hated leaning on him like this but his friendship was the only one that she had left. When she married Paul she seemed to push everyone else out of her life, everyone that is but Chris Irvine. I guess you could call him part of the reason for her divorce, years ago she had slipped up and cheated on Paul with him…things were never the same.

Paul told her he forgave her but she knew deep down he really didn't. He did it because he didn't want to loose to (in his words) an "under class man" like Chris Irvine. Paul felt the need to constantly throw her infidelity in her face, accuse her of still being with Chris only to screw around himself on Stephanie over and over. It was true that her and Chris remained close but after that fateful evening she never once acted on her feelings for the Canadian again.

It wasn't long until he was by her side and she was sitting on her sofa crying on the blonde mans shoulder. "Look at me." He said taking her into his arms. "Things are going to be ok, those kids are going to be ok."

"Thank you." She said wrapping her arms around his neck in a deep hug.

"What the fuck is this then?" Paul screamed as he burst threw their front door.

"Paul." She gasped breaking apart from Chris's embrace.

"I KNEW IT!" He said continuing to yell. "I ALWAYS KNEW YOU WERE SCREWING AROUND ON ME!"

"She's not YOU Paul!" Chris shouted. "There's been nothing between us, no matter how much you and I know that she belongs with me." It wasn't a smart move on Chris's part; he knew he'd pay for it later as it only drove Paul further over the edge.

"Your going to lose the kids over this!" He shouted. "Wait until this gets out in court!"

"Oh she's got more then enough women to testify against you, oh and one's from this decade." Chris retorted.

"Dirt." Hunter yelled and spit on both Chris and his wife Stephanie.

It was at that point that Aurora toddled down the stairs holding her hands over her ears. "Daddy stop yelling at mommy." She said crying.

**Daddy please stop yelling  
I can't stand the sound **

"Oh baby I'm sorry I woke you up." Paul said scooping up the youngster and holding her in his arms. He kissed her on the forehead before he laid her down and told her to go back upstairs and that he would be up to tuck her into bed in a moment.

"No make mommy stop crying." She begged, looking over at her teary-eyed mother. "She loves you daddy, just do what I do and say your sorry and give her a kiss her on the cheek."

"Honey I can't do that and I don't want your pretty little ears around all this. So daddy's going to go and he'll see you soon ok hunny?" He asked crouching down to be at eye level with his sweet baby girl.

"Don't go daddy." She pleaded. "I love you too!"

**  
Make mama stop crying'  
'Cause I need you around  
My mama she loves you  
No matter what she says it's true  
I know that she hurts you  
But remember I love you too!  
**

"I'm sorry baby, but daddy really should go." He said in a sweet voice. "Before he does something that he regrets." He finished stopping to look up at her mother and Chris. Paul tussled the girl's hair and kissed her again before moving to the doorway.

"Don't do it!" She cried. "Or I'll…I'll runnded away!"

Paul moved once again to the small girl. "Come on sweetie don't be like that, sometimes things just don't turn out the way we want them to. This is one of those times, now I'll see you really soon I promise ok?"

She once again shook her head violently no.

**  
I ran away today, ran from the noise  
Ran away  
Don't wanna go back to that place  
But don't have no choice, no way  
**

Stephanie looked at Paul, he was always so sweet with the kids and it was one of the only things left that she loved about him. She could see his heart was breaking just like hers had before he arrived, children couldn't really understand what was happening. All they wanted was for things to stay the same. Stephanie could relate to that, change was something she didn't normally take well but this was one time when she herself was ready for it.

Things with Paul were bad and she hoped that through all this that things didn't end up nasty. She wasn't deaf, she had heard him threaten her but she knew that right now he was just hurt and venting. She knew how shocked he was when she asked for a divorce last night, they threatened to get one over and over but it was only last night she made good on those threats.

**It aint easy, growing' up in world war 3  
Never knowing' what love could be  
But I've seen, I don't want love to destroy me  
Like it did my family**

"Come on baby." Steph said moving to the child. "I'll put you back to bed."

"No." Aurora shouted.

"It's ok, daddy will take you." Paul said, offering the little girl his hand.

She pulled away. "No." She repeated. "Please." The toddler begged. "I'll do anything…I'll brush my teeth everyday, I'll say my prayers…I'll even eat my vegetables!" Aurora said waling. "I told mommy… I did daddy, I'll get baptised if you don't go. Please." The child folding her hands as though she was praying now.

"Hunny you can't fix this, it's not you fault." Paul told her.

**Can we work it out  
Can we be a family  
I promise I'll be better  
****Mommy I'll do anything  
Can we work it out  
Can we be a family  
I promise I'll be better  
Daddy please don't leave**

She screwed up her face for a moment in thought and suddenly the metaphorical light bulb went off. "Wait here…one second." Aurora said, and before anyone had a chance to speak she booted it up the stairs and returned moments later once again holding something behind her back."I can fix this, I know how." She said speaking again.

In her hand she grasped their family picture from her nightstand. She stared at the picture of her, her mother, her brother and her father by her night-light when she was upstairs and she just couldn't understand. She didn't get how they could all look so happy there and now they all seemed so sad, why couldn't they smile like that all the time. "Look" She said holding it out in front of her. She pointed to all the faces. "We need to look like this all the time, we can just pretend. Please? I pretend all the time." The little girl begged tears filling her big brown eyes.

**In our family portrait  
****We look pretty happy  
We look pretty normal  
Lets go back to that  
In our family portrait  
We look pretty happy  
Lets play pretend  
Act like it goes naturally,  
Oh lets go back Oh lets go back that  
Remember the days, remember the days**

"Sweetie, that's just photograph...it can't be like that all the time. Its just a split second in our whole lives." Paul told her.

"Then I'll freeze time." The little girl concluded looking around. "Everybody smile…wait what's Uncie Chris doing here." She stopped when she noticed the familiar man on their sofa.

"And that's my exit cue." Paul said placing his hand on the door handle.

"No daddy don't leave me…daddy don't leave." She cried grabbing onto Paul's pants leg.

"Bye sweetheart, I love you." He said shaking her off him and escaping through the front door.

**Don't leave... don't leave... Daddy don't leave...  
Don't leave... Daddy don't leave...  
Daddy don't leave.. Daddy don't leave... Daddy don't leave...  
Don't leave... don't leave...  
Turn around please... He's so mad**

She moved to the window quickly to watch her father make his way down the driveway and back to his car. "Daddy!" She screeched. "Daddy turn around!"The little girl continued to yell pounding her tiny fists against the window**.**

Chris moved to her attempting to pick her up so he could carry her upstairs. "Come on I'll read you a story." He said trying to bribe her away from the window.

"NOOOOOO!" She screamed kicking away from him. "Leave me alone!!" She wiped her snotty nose in her sleeve as she continued to pound on the glass. "DADDY!! She screeched. "DADDY!!" The small girl collapsed her head, tired and nearly choking on her own tears.

Stephanie couldn't stand to see her like this, she knew how she was feeling but it wasn't the same. She was just like Aurora who had grown into the epitome of a daddy's girl. Stephanie could remember many nights when she would cry for her father, it wasn't the same but she remembered how her only comfort was that her and Shane would get to sleep in the "big bed" with mommy.  
**  
Remember that the night you left  
you took my shining star  
Daddy don't leave...  
Daddy don't leave...  
Daddy don't leave...  
Don't leave us here alone  
**

"Chris I'll call you tomorrow." Stephanie said. He nodded and kissed her on the cheek before he moved to the door that Paul had just left through. He knew she needed to be there for her daughter right now and she would always put herself second. Chris promised himself he would comfort her tomorrow. "Goodnight Stephy." He said. "Take care of yourself too ok, because if you don't take care of yourself how can you take care of the kids." Stephanie knew he was right and she was grateful to have him in her life.

"Come on baby." She said scooping up the little girl. "You can come sleep with mommy tonight."

Stephanie carried a half asleep Aurora up over the stairs. "I'll be nicer mommy." She mumbled her eyes still closed. "I won't spill things anymore…I'll be better, I'll do everything right."

"I know you would sweetie." Steph said not wanting to fight with the sleepy child anymore.

"I'll be his little girl forever…"

**Mama I'll be nicer  
I'll be so much better  
I'll tell my brother  
Oh I won't spill the milk at dinner  
I'll be so much better  
I'll do everything right  
I'll be your little girl forever  
I'll go to sleep at night**

Smiling through her tears Stephanie felt the warmth in her heart. Their little girl would do anything to keep her parents together; no matter how much it wouldn't help. Stephanie was at peace with Aurora's last statement because she couldn't think of a day when Paul didn't tell her that he didn't want her to ever grow up and leave him.

Maybe her and Paul would never be the kind of family for their kids that most children had, but they were all still a family… married or not. Paul would be a part of both there lives forever, but maybe apart things could be better. One thing would never change though…she really would be their little girl forever.


End file.
